Of Jealousy and Secret Rendezvous
by Aeneid
Summary: Modern day AU setting. Sequel to the prompt 'Love Hotel" under Everyday Diary (Chapter 15). Based on the prompt: "My friend set me up on a blind date and i can't really refuse because they think i've been single for ages so they think they're doing me a favour and we have a massive fight about it that ends with us saying "i love you" for the first time."


Back with another fic. This is the offshoot sequel to the 'Love Hotel' prompt that I wrote under Everyday Diary. Aside from their foul mouths, nothing sexual to worry about.

Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Gintama. It belongs to Sorachi Hideaki.

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 _ **Of Jealousy and Secret Rendezvous**_

* * *

Week after week of dressing up and glamming up to look presentable to 'prospective boyfriends' that her father had introduced to her for much of the weekend this month, she was so exhausted and done with socializing with [most] people. As much as she wanted to beg out of the marriage meetings, she couldn't; her father had gone through the trouble of setting up male members of his staff, who all happened to be single, to meet her in the hopes of getting her interested in the dating scene again. Sakata Gintoki found nothing wrong with his daughter being a career woman, but just like any father, he was worried for her future… and the fact that she was not interested in settling down just yet had alarm bells ringing in his ears.

She did her best to reassure Papa that she would think about that later (she was only twenty-three!), as she was too busy with work and her budding career to do anything related to romance, but he wouldn't have it; for the whole month, during the weekends, he had forced her to go through some marriage meetings.

Frankly, she would rather spend her weekends in her apartment doing something else, but no, she had to get out and fake interest in the men Papa had introduced her to.

Then, right after each marriage meeting, she had to lie each and every time her father asked her what she thought of this and that guy, and always ended it with her saying, "I'll think about it." whenever he would ask her if she wanted a second date.

 _"All you have to do is ask, and I'll set another meeting." Sakata Gintoki assured her._

Kagura knew her father meant well, as it was part and parcel of a manager to look after their employees… even with the matchmaking part.

But if there was one thing her Papa had to understand, it would be wanting to totally focus on her career, and that she didn't really do _dating_ now compared to her university days when she used to go on dates with some guys, only for it not to work out. Resigned to the fact that she was probably not meant to date until probably later in her life, she got too busy and forgot all about it until she started working.

… Then again, she hadn't been quite honest about this whole _romance_ thing with Papa.

It was rather… _complicated_ , to say the least.

She unlocked the keys to her apartment, and was just about to head to her bathroom to take a warm bath (her feet were killing her right now) a voice from the entrance of her door nearly scared her.

"Finally home, I see."

She barely managed to stop herself from jumping in surprise; after all, she lived alone… and only one person had access to her apartment, aside from herself. She nearly forgot that she asked him to go to her apartment! "… It's only nine in the evening."

The person ignored her reply and frowned. "Seems like you had lots of fun."

"Not really." She replied absentmindedly, removing her shoes and tidily placing it inside the shoe cabinet near the front door. Exhaustion was getting the better of her, and the less she thought about what she went through earlier, the better. The food had been great at the restaurant they went to; as for her partner for today, not so much.

Most especially if said partner spent most of the time figuratively kiss Papa's ass. No doubt, the guy wanted a promotion, and was doing whatever he could to get it by flattering Papa.

The struggle not to roll her eyes at that time had been very, _very_ difficult, when all she could think about was how pathetic her partner was.

 _I don't wanna talk about it,_ was what she wanted to say out loud, but before she could do so, the person grabbed hold of her arm as she tried to make her way towards her bathroom.

"I don't believe you."

"Look, Okita, I've had a long day." she threw him an annoyed look, not caring if he was glaring at her. "I want to enjoy a warm bath because my whole body is aching, and I'm tired—"

"I've had a long day too, _waiting for you…_ and for every single fucking weekend night of this month, at your request, only for _you_ to fall asleep on me when you get home." At this, she winced at the rather foul expletive. She should've been used to it by now but…

"W-what's _your_ problem? We always see each other at work—"

"How would _you_ feel when you get told by the person you're exclusively dating that she's off to some marriage meeting set up by her own _father_ and for a _whole damn month_?" despite the calmness in his voice, Kagura could see the seething beneath his eyes.

He was totally not happy with this.

"W-well, I'd be angry—"

" _Exactly._ " He said curtly. "And with _you_ acting all suspicious—"

"What?!"

"—I'm having my doubts as to whether you actually enjoyed getting set up or you meant what you said about not having fun."

What the hell was up with the men in her life?!

Why were _they_ unable to understand that she always meant what she said?!

Exasperated, she tried again. "I already told you that I _did not_ enjoy spending time with them." How could she, when all of them talked about work, work, work, and how much they enjoyed working alongside her father? The whole damn thing was a waste of time; not to mention, she felt like she was attending some kind of party wherein the main purpose was to worship and glorify her own father, much to the older man's happiness.

Her idiot of a father was seriously so simple-minded, it was embarrassing.

"Why can't _you_ understand something so simple?!" Kagura snapped.

"Because the fucking moment I thought I finally managed to get the attention _and_ the affection of the person I've been in love with all these years, in comes her father, ruining every fucking thing I've done to convince her to go out with me, and suddenly forcing _you_ into those marriage meeting crap!"

At that instant, her anger had vanished into thin air, and all she could do right now was gape at him. No matter how hard she tried to force herself to speak, no words came out of her mouth, nor was she even able to utter a sound as she listened to his outburst. Okita Sougo's usually calm expression had turned angry as he began talking about how, during their childhood, he had always been looking out for her, though he had not shown it, as not to get made fun of the other children his age. He had been rather civil and cold towards her back then, even to the point of being a bully at times, but who knew he had been… crushing on her for years?

She had barely contained her gasp when he got to their college years. Their relationship back then had been shaky, as if nothing had changed from their childhood days, as he continued to goad her, though this time around, it was with words, rather than with actions. At first, she had been unable to fight back because of the upperclassman-underclassman hierarchy, though it had all been thrown out of the window the instant she fought back by kicking him in the shin when he first found out that she was going on a date with someone from his year level.

"—and that fucker even bragged to me about wanting to get in your pants—"

Woah.

Wait.

What?!

"—I was ready to break their faces when I heard them making bets on who gets to score you first—"

Was _that_ the reason why she never had second dates during her university years?

"—All it took was a threat and Tokugawa's influence for them to back the fuck off—"

Even Soyo-chan was involved…?!

What else did _that_ guy do?!

Somehow, everything made so much sense, all thanks to his outburst… though Kagura was aware that if she could help it, she would rather not see her boss and boyfriend become this angry again. He may not look like it, but Sougo was rather emotional, and whenever he got pushed to his limit, he would never back down, and would make sure to let the other person know what he felt.

Just like what was happening to her right now.

"—the last straw was at that love hotel—"

That, she knew.

Forcing to sleep beside one another when they missed the last train, she had also accidentally peeked at him in his birthday suit when she thought she was out to see a view. It had been mortifying to see him in all his glory while in the shower… but in hindsight, to her naughty mind, she had had a great view of him.

Beneath the suits he wore to work daily, who knew her boss had a great body?

That night had been rather… _memorable_ , at least, for her. No matter how hard she tried to force herself to sleep, she simply could _not_. The fact that he would be sleeping beside her after he had his bath and her still having a rather lewd image stuck in her mind did not bode well for her sanity and emotional well-being. Kagura had actually contemplated on running away and hiding it out at a _karaoke_ place until the first trains started running just so she could avoid him.

However, just when she finally decided to leave, she heard the door to the bathroom open, his footsteps echoed against the marble flooring as he made his way around the room. At that time, Sakata Kagura knew she had to suck it up and force herself to stay with _him_ , in the same room, and in the same bed. Her pride was at stake, and the last thing she needed was him mocking her for being unable to not freak out over the state of his nakedness earlier.

Needless to say, when it was time for them to sleep, one thing led to the other, and before she could register _everything_ , she was making out with her boss and childhood rival on the bed of a love hotel, which ended with him teaching her things that still made her blush whenever she zoned out. They agreed to take things slow, and the first step for them was to acknowledge the fact that they were now each other's significant other, though they had to keep their relationship a secret, as not to scandalize the people around them. Everyone who knew her knew exactly how much her hatred for her boss ran, while nearly everyone from his side knew that he could not stand Sakata.

(The only one who knew the truth about how he felt for Sakata would be his sister, Okita Mitsuba, now Hijikata Mitsuba.)

That, and they did not want any office rumors spreading about her seducing him for favors, or him using his authority to coerce her into dating him.

The second thing that they agreed on would be them exclusively dating one another.

Technically, her attending the various marriage meetings did not break the second rule, as she had no interest in dating anyone but _him_ (admittedly, all of her prospected were a total bore and paled in comparison to Okita), but she suspected that he did not see it that way, despite her insistence.

"— _I_ thought I finally had you within my reach, after all those years of hoping and trying to make a move on you." The outburst he had earlier had finally winded down to controlled anger, though it was evident that he was still annoyed over the whole situation. "But _you_ telling _me_ that you were trying to appease your father by _attending all those marriage meeting for the whole month_ … we might as well break up."

"No!" she yelled out before she could even stop herself.

She would not allow that.

Five months into their secret relationship, and they've already hit a bump; for her, it was amazing that they managed to last that long without getting into a major fight, as they were always prone to fighting over the littlest things during work, much to the amusement of their colleagues, but this…

After hearing him vent his anger towards the situation, and to an extent, her, she felt dreadful over the fact that it had hurt him to be kept waiting _every single weekend_ for those matchmaking sessions she attended to appease her father to end. She _did_ ask him to come over so that they could at least cuddle and fall asleep beside the other, but exhaustion would always claim her, and she would end up falling asleep and waking up to find her bed empty.

"… Then give me a reason _why_ I shouldn't end this."

Why is it when she had finally been given a chance to say what she really felt, she always ended up getting tongue-tied and silent…?

It was frustrating how ironic the whole situation was; at any given day, she was rather foul-mouthed, blunt, and said whatever it was that came to her mind (she lacked a brain-to-mouth filter), yet when given the opportunity to say her piece, she always clammed up. On the other hand, Okita was her opposite, as he always said everything that needs to be said out loud, and never did he waver whenever it came to being frank.

"I—"

"If you can't answer me in a few seconds, I'm leav—"

The first five words he said had sent her into a panic.

The next four words that followed it had sent her jumping.

On the last few words he uttered, Kagura found herself wrapping her arms around his neck in an attempt to kiss him, but what happened was that she ended up planting an awkward kiss on his neck instead, and she managed to pin him to the ground. Thankfully, he had broken their fall by slowing it down, and he ended up sighing when they found themselves on the floor..

"… Seriously? That's how you plan to stop me from leaving? By using your body weight to pin me down?"

"—ove you."

"What?" he asked in an irritated tone.

Damn it, why, of all times, was she unable to express herself properly?

"… Damn it." She muttered under her breath.

 _This is it._

Before she could let embarrassment and shyness stop her, she bent her head down and kissed him on the lips.

It surprised her when Okita suddenly kissed her back so eagerly, licking her lower lips as she gave him an open mouth kiss, teasing him further by unbuttoning the dress shirt he wore. In turn, he began roaming his hands on the sides of her thighs, lightly tugging down the skirt she was wearing in the process.

They were not yet at _that stage_ in the relationship, as they were still reeling from the sudden turn of events that began from their love hotel stay, but that didn't stop them from pushing the other to the limits in various ways.

In her case, she always tried to see how long it would take for him to give in to the temptation by dressing up in various lingerie sets whether they were at her place or at his, with it always ending in each other's beds. It was probably just that lustful side of her wanting more, yet was still reluctant to go all the way with her lover.

Still… for the meantime, at least, this was enough for her.

"Have I convinced you then…?" she asked him when she pulled apart from the kiss.

"Maybe." Came that deadpan tone of his.

Sighing, she got off of him, clearly at a loss as to what to do next.

Maybe she'll just forget all of this in the morning, when it would all sink in that the only man who could get her so riled up broke up with her after nearly half a year of dating the other secretly. She dreaded the thought of getting persuaded to attend marriage meetings with men who were either full of themselves or who were too desperate to get a promotion that they would spend more time praising her father than getting to know her.

"… Well, whatever suits you." She forced herself to smile at Okita, whose face was wiped clean of emotions. "Please show yourself out; I have important things to take care of." Appalled that tears were threatening to fall down her face, she turned her back on him, and was just about to bolt for her bathroom when he hugged her from behind, effectively stopping her in her tracks.

"… Don't you _ever_ do that again."

 _What was he saying now…?_

"I get really pissed off at the thought of _you_ meeting up with those guys when you clearly didn't want to go." Were her ears deceiving her, or was _he_ admitting that he was… _jealous_?

"They were a bore." She informed him. "Not really worth my time when they ended up sucking up to dad just to rack up points in the hopes of getting a promotion in return."

For the first time that evening, she heard him chuckle. "I can imagine."

"So… yeah. I'm sorry too." She sighed, placing both of her hands on his arm while she inched her head closer to the side of his face. "It's hard to decline when dad thinks I'm a dutiful goody-two-shoes who will simply obey him without question."

" _I know._ " He told her, sending shivers down to her spine.

Of course this jerk knew; how couldn't he, when that one time, he tested her to her limits as well…?

Before she knew it, she felt her face flame up.

Thank goodness it happened during autumn; it had been very easy to hide the kiss marks he left on her body by bundling up and putting on some make-up to cover the fact that her weekend was spent all tied up while he did every conceivable thing to torture and tease her.

"That's gonna be the last time I get involved in some marriage meet. All nine of them were disastrous from start to finish." She sighed. "Never again."

"Okay then." He gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I believe you."

She placed her hands on his arms. "Hey, Sougo?" when he responded, she asked, "Did you mean what you said earlier? About… ummm… about…"

"About me being in love with you?"

She nodded timidly, unable to continue .

"Why wouldn't I be serious about it when it's the truth?" the fact that he stated it so casually had turned her into a darker shade of red both in embarrassment and in bliss. "What, you don't believe me?"

"It's not that. Just that… I got caught off-guard, is all." Hell, her initial thought was that _he_ only fell for her because of their daily interactions at work.

Who knew it went way back during their childhood…?

"As for me… well…" she sighed.

It was now or never.

"You used to annoy the hell out of me but ever since we started working together, even though I don't show it, I've always admired you." The vermillion-haired woman felt her face burn as soon as the words left her lips, but she continued on. "And… well… admiration turned into… into something… _more_."

She swallowed nervously. "I… I've been in love with you for a while… and while it scares me to admit it, even to myself, I-I'm glad to hear that my feelings are requited."

Chuckling, he hugged her tighter. "I'm glad, Kagura." He nibbled her ear, making her moan a bit from the contact. "My turn to ask: how would you rate those marriage meetings?"

She was glad to hear that he didn't sound angry anymore. "… Frankly, those guys were so fucking boring and full of themselves, I actually zoned out and just imagined what our evening could've been if I didn't go out to meet them."

"And what did _you_ imagine?"

She turned to look at him and flashed a naughty smile.

"I'll show you instead."

* * *

'Marriage meeting' refers to omiai （お見合い）.

Quoting Wikipedia:

"Miai (見合, "matchmaking", lit. "looking at one another") or omiai (お見合) is a Japanese traditional custom in which unattached individuals are introduced to each other to consider the possibility of marriage."

With regards to Gintoki setting up his staff members with his daughter, that is perfectly acceptable... at least, for their culture. Managers have this duty to look out for their employees, even going as far as setting up the single people with other single people in the hopes of them finding happiness and stability in life.

Thank you for reading! o(＿ ＿*)o


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